Oil well packer



Dec. l, 1953 J, ROCKOFF 2,661,064

OIL WELL PACKER Filed Nov. l, 1946 5 Sheeis-Sheet l lNvENToR JoscPH focxoFF ATTORNEY."

Dec. l, 1953 1 ROCKOFF 2,661,064

OIL WELL PACKER I I I I I g I i I l l 2'26 I I '25 g 1 I I El 29 l 27 j 'l g I I l I 49 20 I I I f l I 32 f 2l Josemi RocKOFF ATTI'V .'LHEYS Dec. 1, 1953 J. RocKoFF 2,651,054

OIL. WELL PACKER Filed NOV. l, 1946 5 Sheets-Sheei 3 1r-1vENToR JOSEPH RocKoFF BY ATTORNEYS Patented Dec. 1, 1953 UNI'I'EDy STATES OFFICE Joseph-V Rockof, Dayton, Ohio, assigner to 'EheY Dayton: Rubber Company, a= corporationl of Ohio appueafieni-Nuvemrer 1, 194e, seffai Noa-'701,081'- (ol. 16s-aio)- Y Claims.

' 1 This: invention. deals withb expansion members such as packers, and in particular with oil well. packers;v

isA anobject. ofi this invention toVv provide packers: for oil Wells' which.. are chemically resistantto oil.

VIt is another. object?` of.. this invention to pro.- vide.: oil Well packers which. are: resistant. to: high temperatures andli'n particular tol hot oil.

I't is another object of this invention to provide oil well packers which have: a high resiste ance toabrasionlon their surfacelayers.

Itis another object' of. this invention. to pro"- videoil-i vvellV packersf which. are; extremely strong andidurable.

It isI still another object. of this inventionV to provide oil Well packers whichv have' a high lateral` expansibilty.

It is still? another object; of this: invention to provide oil' well packers which, after cessation of the expansioncausing pressure, fully! recover their original'.shapesami'.dimensions.A

It is.' stillf'. another' object ofv this. invention to; providefoil Wellipa'ekers whichzhave aliigh degreev of stiffness in the portions adjacent the edgesand ends, so that no 110W of rubber will occur there underV the'pressure` applied.

. It.- is still another object. of this. invention to provide: oil well. packerswhich have a. long service;life. andirnay. be used.. for a great number of times;

The invention. will Vbe fully: understood from the following description taken in connection Withi the accompanying drawings, inwhich Figuresil, 10, 11. and 12' illustrate in elevational Figurel 8l is' a perspectivek view off one off'the rein-'forcementn rings@ usede at'V eaeli-v endl of ther` packer-:rand Y y .Figure92is1a2perspectiveviewfof the samereinf 2k forcement ring. of Figure 8,. as viewed from the other end; thereof, after anv end layer has been applied thereto.

Referring'now` tor Figure 1 in particular, there, is shown a packerl t0' havingftheretaini-ng colla-rs or shoes Hf and t2 atits: ends and being fastened 11o-anr anchor" pipe I3. While in Figure 1 the.- packeri is' shown in; its. original dimensions,v Fig.- ure` 10 shows it: under' the influence of compressive' forces which eiectY the expansion of the packer t6 and thereby' the'l sealing` of the Well. Figure 1-'1- shows' the use of` thecombination of twol paekersf M1 and. f5 in a',` Well and Figure l2v thatl of` a r packer: i161. in combinationwith a; eeneA packer' i1.' composed. or aipluralityfofrings;

One embodiment oifan packer of my inventioni is illustrated? in4 detail in Figures 2 to 4e; there the packer is generally designated byI the reference numeral i731 The reference numeral |9I indicates anVV inner easing which terminates in a angef- 0" having' heres for studs 41' which are. secu-redwith! nuts'L 25|. outercasing 22" is arranged coneentricaly with reg-ard tor said inner casing F92 this outer easingf has ai angev 23- at which it' isfasterledv tevtlrelpaeker I8 by means' of stads and nuts-i 2341 The packer proper cons-istslof an:` innermostlayer 25 which isi composed eff a-plurallity ofplie's of' rubber-impregnated' fabric' material. The bottom elfldof the packer is illustrated? in crossf sectionA inf-Figure 21; the upper en'df' ef the packer is made with identicalstructure'. each end' of tliei packer, there isplaced a` metal?- ring-'25V over said layer 25, and ahea-'vy' rubber layer lis'applied-over the layer 25- so as' to llf ont the .s.1: aiiebetweensaidtwovl metal* rings: "I-hereover, another layer 3D off al number of rubberized fabrie plies i's'- applied. rihe"f metal 2'? i'sprovided' with a shoulderf on the outer endj and a lip 259 at the: inner` thernetal' ring, meta-I" WiresA 3Hv are Wound over* sadf fabric Vlayer 36'- so'- as"L to" give the various layers a; secure? ltlon-lthe'ring 241i. Two plies-fof rubberized abl,"A 32A are? their placed 0hr`v topl Ofi-` these-i Wire windings;4 The ends of'. the. packer.

eachhave ani-end portionwwhi'cli. is yalsofformed?y off rubberized? fabric. 'Ehe outer.- surfaee of the`r packerisl formed-l off alayer 34`v consisting exelu'-r sivelyiofff rubber material- Alliof the: rubberizetf fabrief layers 4 may be rel placed by rubberized cord layers. It is essential that the textile material, whether cord or fabric, has a high tensile strength and elasticity. In order to obtain this result, especially high elasticity, twisted cords may be used. An especially satisfactory material is nylon which combines both elasticity and high tensile strength. In the case of fabric layers, it is advantageous to apply the fabric in an angle of 45 because the highest degree of stretchability possible is then obtained. It is also helpful to use a fabric which is woven from twisted cords and preferably from twisted nylon cords (nylon is the name commonly applied to a synthetic ber which is a polyamide having a protein-like structure). Furthermore, the lateral stretchability can still be increased by using relatively thin cords for the cross threads and cords of regular thickness for the lengthwise threads. By this, the longitudinal strength is retained while the lateral flexibility and expansibility are considerably increased. Still another means for increasing the lateral expansibility of the packer is to subject the fabric or the cords to a preshrinking process prior to their use in building up the packer.

While practically all rubber materials, in particular synthetic rubbers, are usable for the packers of my invention as long as they are oil resistant, it is preferred to use neoprene therefor. The synthetic rubber-like chloroprene polymer commonly known as neoprene has all properties desired for a packer, in particular high resistance to oil, to abrasion and excellent bonding property with metals. It was also found advantageous to use a softer rubber for impregnating and bonding the various inner layers and to select a relatively harder rubber composition relatively hard by comparison with the rubber used for the inner layers for building up the outermost and top surface layers 33 and 34. By this, flow of the rubber during application of expansion causing pressures and thus deformation of the packer are prevented.

: Figures 5 to 9 illustrate the process of manufacture of a packer of my invention, but of an embodiment different from that of Figures 2 to 4. There, the reference numeral 35 indicates a mandrel, for example a steel mandrel, on which the various layers Vare built up. First several layers of rubberized fabric 36 Yare wound on the mandrel 35. Figure 6 shows the fabric used therefor; it is on a bias and is woven from thin cross threads 3l and relatively heavy longitudinal cords 38. As stated above, it is advantageous to apply the fabric at an angle of 45 degrees, or in other words, the fabric is applied in s uch a manner that the threads which run in one direction are at an angle of 45 degrees to the longitudinal axis of the sleeve. Over this fabric layer 36 there is then applied a layer 44 Which consists of a relatively soft rubber material. This rubber layer 44 does not extend entirely to the ends of the mandrel, but enough space is left so that a metal ring 39 may be placed at each end of the mandrel. Figures 8 and 9 show the construction of the rings as they are applied to the end portions over the fabric layer 36. The rings have been previously combined with an end layer 42 which consists of fabric material impregnated with a relatively hard rubber. The rings 39 which have one inwardly tapered end surface 40 decreasing in diameter from the outer surface to the inner surface to form the lip responsible for firm anchorage and for preventing the flow of rubber 4 and which also have a shoulder 4I at the other end for the same purpose, are combined with the end piece 42 by means of screws 43. After insertion of the metal rings, another layer of rubberized fabric 45 is wound over` the rubber layer 44 and the rings 39. Steel wire and rubberized fabric layers (not shown) are then wound over said rubberized fabric layers 45 to fill out the recess formed between the lip 40 and the shoulder 4l of the metal rings 39, similarly to that shown in Figure 2. Finally a layer 46, consisting of an especially hard rubber, is applied over the entire unit. The assembled packer is vthen placed between steel holding plates and wrapped and finally cured so as to bond it to one integral unit. The surface of the packer may then be subjected to a final grinding process if desired.

The packers of my invention are highly resistant to oil especially when made of neoprene. They also resist high temperatures and in particular do lnot deteriorate under the influence of hot oil. Due to the use of harder rubber on the outside surfaces, the packers of my invention are highly resistant to abrasion. The packers are strong and durable and withstand a great many uses. While they are highly expansible in the lateral direction, they have a high degree of rigidity longitudinally. After cessation of compression forces applied to expand the packer into sealing position, they immediately return to their original shape and dimensions. Due to the specic shape of the metal reinforcing rings, a flow of rubber under the pressure used does not occur. All these features coact considerably to increase the service lifeV of the packers of my invention.

It will be understood that while there have been described herein certain specific embodiments of my invention, it is not intended thereby to have the invention limited to the details given, since it is susceptible to various modications and changes that come within the spirit of the disclosure and the scope of the appended claims.

f; I claim:

l. In an oil well packer a packer sleeve comprising an annular inner rubberized textile layer, an annular metal reinforcing ring member on each of the ends of said packer sleeve positioned over the ends of said inner textile layer, an annular bulk rubber layer between said metal reinforcing ring members co-axially arranged therewith and positioned over said inner textile layer, an outer annular rubberized textile layer extending over said bulli rubber layer and over said metal reinforcing ring members, and fastening means applied around said last-mentioned textile layer adjacent both ends of the sleeve and oyer said metal reinforcing ring members for securing said textile layer around said metal reinforcing ring members, all of said layers and members being integrally united.

2. In an oil well packer according to claim 1 wherein the fastening means comprises metal windings applied under tension over the ends of the outer textile layer.

3. In an oil well packer according to claim 1 wherein the rubber is a synthetic rubber-like material of the chloroprene polymer type.

4. An oil Well packer comprising a sleeve having an annular inner rubberized textile layer, an annular metal reinforcing means in the form of a ring at each of the ends of the packer positioned over the ends of said inner textile layer,

an annular bulk rubber layer between said metal reinforcing means co-axially arranged therewith and positioned over said inner textile layer, an intermediate rubberized annular textile layer extending over said bulk rubber layer and ove1I said metal reinforcing means, metal windings on said last mentioned rubberized textile layer adjacent both ends of the packer securing said textile layer around said metal reinforcing means, a rubberized textile material wound over said metal windings, and an outer annular rubber surface layer positioned over said intermediate textile layer and over the textile material wound over the metal windings, all of said layers and means being integrally united.

5. An oil Well packer according to claim 4 wherein at least one of the textile layers comprises longitudinal members applied at an angle to the longitudinal axis of the packer sleeve.

6. An oil Well packer according to claim 4 wherein at least one of the textile layers cornprises rubberized cord.

7. An oil well packer according to claim 6 wherein the rubberized cord comprises synthetic fibers of the polyamide type.

8. An oil well packer according to claim 4 wherein at least one of the textile layers comprises a rubberized fabric.

9. An oil well packer comprising a sleeve having an inner annular rubberized textile layer, annular metal reinforcing means on each of the ends of said sleeve positioned over the ends of said inner textile layer, an annular bulk rubber layer between said metal reinforcing means coaxially arranged therewith and positioned over said inner textile layer, an intermediate annular rubberized textile layer extending over said bulk rubber layer and over said metal reinforcing means, fastening means positioned over said intermediate textile layer adjacent both ends thereof securing said intermediate textile layer around said metal reinforcing means, an annular outer rubber surface layer over said intermediate textile layer, and a rubberized textile ring member positioned over the end edges of the concentric layers and the metal reinforcing means, all of said layers and means being integrally united.

l0. An oil well packer according to claim 9 wherein the rubberized rings positioned at the ends of the packer sleeve comprise rubberized fabric.

11. An oil well packer according to claim 9 wherein at least one of said textile layers comprises rubberized fabric having cross threads considerably thinner than the longitudinal threads.

12. An oil well packer according to claim 9 wherein the rubberized textile ring at the ends of the packer sleeve are composed of rubberized cord.

13. An oil well packer comprising a packer sleeve having an inner annular rubberized textile layer, a metal ring in each end of said sleeve positioned over said inner textile layer at the ends thereof, each of said metal rings having a beveled surface at the inner end thereof and having an inwardly extending shoulder formed on the outer periphery adjacent the beveled end thereof, and each of said rings having a shoulder extension extending outwardly at the outer end of the ring opposite the beveled end, an annular bulk rubber layer positioned between said rings and over said textile layer, an intermediate annular rubberized textile layer extending over said bulk rubber layer and over the shoulder formed at the beveled end of the ring and engaging said outwardly extending shoulder at the opposite end of the ring, clamping means wound under tension around the intermediate textile layer at the ends thereof applied between the inwardly extending shoulder at the beveled end of the ring and the outwardly extending shoulder at the opposite end of the ring, a reinforcing rubberized annular textile layer wound over said clamping means, and an annular outer rubber surface layer surrounding said last-named annular textile layer, all of said layers and means being integrally united.

14. An oil well packer comprising a packer sleeve having an inner annular layer consisting of a plurality of preshrunk fabric plies impregnated with a chloroprene polymer type synthetic rubber, said fabric being applied with the longitudinal threads at an angle of 45 degrees to the longitudinal axis of the sleeve and having cross threads which are considerably thinner than the longitudinal threads; an annular bulk layer of synthetic rubber of the chloroprene polymer type surrounding said inner layer of fabric plies and positioned thereover; two metal reinforcing rings, one on each end of said packer, said rings each being beveled at its inner end and each having an inwardly extending shoulder formed on its outer periphery adjacent the beveled end, and each ring having a projecting shoulder extension at the opposite end thereof; an outer annular fabric layer impregnated with a synthetic rubber of the chloroprene polymer type extending over said bulk layer and over said metal rings; steel wire windings on said outer impregnated fabric layer over said metal rings; annular fabric layers impregnated with synthetic rubber of the chloroprene polymer type over said wire windings; an outermost chloroprene polymer type synthetic rubber surface layer surrounding said outer fabric layer; annular fabric end members impregnated with synthetic rubber of the chloroprene polymer type positioned at both ends of said packer, said synthetic rubber used for said outer surface coat and for said fabric layers at the ends of Said packer being harder than said synthetic rubber used for the inner parts of said packer; and means for anchoring said packer; all of said layers, rings and means being integrally united.

15. An oil well packer according to claim 14 wherein the fabric of which the inner and outer annular fabric layers and the fabric layer over the wire windings are composed, comprises synthetic polyamide textile fibers.

JOSEPH ROCKOFF.

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